


Now or Never

by ThoseGayBoys (LissMels)



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Brotherly Affection, Brotherly Love, Headcanon, M/M, Oneshot, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-30
Updated: 2015-05-30
Packaged: 2018-04-02 02:07:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,621
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4041655
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LissMels/pseuds/ThoseGayBoys
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Fred and George Weasley have always been close. Holding hands weren't a problem until some Slytherin kids started talking about it. That's when the twins realized that people found their closeness weird, and they started hiding it. But the story doesn't end there; This is the untold story of how they slowly realized they were falling in love... With each other...</p>
            </blockquote>





	Now or Never

**Author's Note:**

  * Translation into Polski available: [[T] Teraz albo nigdy](https://archiveofourown.org/works/7359082) by [Rzan](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rzan/pseuds/Rzan)



Fred and George had always been close - Closer than other people would call normal. They spent their first couple of years sleeping in the same bed, because their parents could not afford two. Even after they got their own separate beds, they were unbelievably close. They played together, sat together, and they did nothing without the other. Molly had seen them holding hands at times, but did not find this strange, seeing how close the twins were. 

When they started their first year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, they became extremely mischievous, along with their new friend, Lee Jordan. Owl after owl Molly received about her sons' behavior. They did pranks against students and teachers they did not like; jinxing and hexing objects to make a fool out of others. But the truth was: Fred and George would rather do their pranks without Lee. Of course, Lee was a great prankster and friend, and they loved him like a sixth brother, but the twins wanted the jokes and pranks to be their special thing. They wanted to do it alone, just the two of them, without Lee there to turn them into a mischief _trio_. 

When the twins started their second year, Lee caught them holding hands. The twins, now twelve years old, understood that people would find their closeness strange, so they tried hiding it. They had learnt from the previous year, when some Slytherin kids had muttered the word "Twincest" as they stared at the twins. 

It was during February, and Fred and George had the whole Gryffindor common room for themselves. The fireplace was the only source of light, and the twins lay half asleep in the couch in front of it.

"We have potions homework," said Fred, sounding tired.

"I say we drop it. You know Snape doesn't like us, he's gonna take points from us no matter how brilliant we do." Fred smiled at his twin.

"Couldn't agree more, brother," Fred then said, and the two smiled at each other as their fingers entwined with each other's. This was nothing new to them; they often held hands to show that they cared for one another.

Suddenly, the portrait door swung open, and Lee came in, followed by Charlie, Angelina, and Oliver. Lee walked over to the twins to sit down, and the two realized just about too late that they were still holding hands. They pulled away as soon as they realized this, but they could already tell that Lee had seen it. He froze on the spot and shifted his gaze between the two of them, but then he brushed it off and sat down. The three friends talked as if nothing had happened, and then Lee decided to go to sleep, and headed for the boys' dormitory.

"We've gotta clear him up about this," said George, and Fred didn't say anything, but nodded instead.

The twins then headed up to the boys' dormitory, where Lee had already changed into his nightwear.

"Look," said George, looking from his twin to Lee. "About what happened, we're not into that kind of stuff if that's what you think."

"Oh, I know that," said Lee, as if brushing the thought off his mind. "Don't worry, I know you're close." It was a rather embarrassing moment.

"We've just kind of always-"

"-I know, I know," Lee cut him off. "You're twins, you're meant to be close, I just didn't know it was normal to..." He paused and looked up at the twins. "But I guess it's just a twin thing, right? I mean it's not like you-"

"-No, no, it's not like that," Fred interrupted. "That's what we're trying to say, and also we'd love it if you kept your mouth shut about it." Lee nodded.

"Yeah, yeah, of course, mate."

Lee never really talked about it after that, keeping his promise to the fullest.

It was not until the twins' fifth year something happened. Their pranks had developed, and they were currently planning on creating skiving snackboxes. They hadn't made any yet, but they were making up ideas for different sweets and their names. Most of their days were spent in their dormitory, when they did not have classes of quidditch practice.

"Puking pastilles, that's brilliant," said Fred, who was sitting on his four-poster with George. They were looking over a piece of parchment, where the names of their snackboxes were listed.

"Nosebleed Nougat, Fever Fudge, Fainting Fancies - Oy, we should slip Filch something!"

"Yeah, I can only imagine him running off to cry at Dumbledore's desk." George laughed, then silence occupied the dormitory. George looked at his brother.

"Do you think we'll manage to make these?" He asked. Fred hestitated for no longer than a couple a seconds, before he smiled weakly.

"I don't know, but it's worth a try, right?" George nodded, but he was still not smiling. "Come on," Fred then said, seeing his brother's disbelief. "For Weasley's Wizard Wheezes!" At this George finally smiled. "We'll try, and if I know us right we'll succeed, cause we're bloody brilliant, Georgie." As he said this, he grabbed hold of George's hand and raised his eyebrows, as if asking for approval about their future joke shop.

In that exact moment, there was this odd feeling that neither Fred nor George could describe; for some reason, Fred felt the need to come closer to his brother. They did not have to say anything. In fact, everything about the skiving snackboxes and Weasley's Wizard Wheezes had suddenly vanished from their minds. Their hands were still held, and they found themselves forgetting who they were with. All they knew, was that they wanted to come closer... And closer... And even closer... Their eyes were closed the next moment, and they were left feeling each other's breath against their slightly parted lips. And their noses were touching too. Just a little further, and their lips would meet. Just a tiny, little bit further... It was the one desire they shared at the moment, though when George opened his eyes, he looked straight into his brother's, and they carefully slid away from each other.

Not until then did they let go of each other's hands. They were both aware of what had happened, but chose not to discuss it. Disappointment flood through George's body, but he couldn't tell whether it was because he had wanted it, or because it was wrong. Fred cursed under his breath, then started changing into his nightwear. He then went to bed, saying nothing but "G'ningt"to George. They were back to normal the day after, talking and laughing as if nothing had happened between them the night before.

Their seventh year was definitely their worst, especially with Umbridge controlling every little thing. The twins had started using their pranks against her in protest, something that every student seemed to be talking about. It seemed to work, too, judging by how exhausted Umbridge looked after a while. They did not involve Lee in most of their pranks, considering that they expected to be expelled as a result of their actions. At some point, Umbridge caught them and gave them detention, but instead, the twins left Hogwarts with style, which was a big slap in the face for the toad-like woman. The big "W" lit up the skies as they left the ground of cheering students. The two knew that they had succeeded, though they did feel sorry for the students left behind with Umbridge in charge.

The twins laughed joyfully as they swept through the air on their broomsticks. They had not been this full of joy in years, and they felt so free, too. The world was full of possibilities, and anything could happen. They had not realized this until now. Nothing was definite, and one had to create one's own faith.

"Oy, Freddie, have I ever told you how much I love you?" George had not intended to say this, and was not entirely sure where it came from.

"Only when we were kids," Fred replied, smiling wide. Still full of joy, he had not found the question strange at all. "But I know." But did he  _really_ know? George was aware that his feelings were out of the ordinary. He saw Fred as a brother, but also more. And then he almost felt guilty for feeling that way. He was mindblown by his own feelings, and had tried to block them out lately.

"What do we do now?" George then asked, looking at Fred.

"We head to Diagon Alley and open Weasley's Wizard Wheezes." Fred said this as if it was everyday business, then he raised his eyebrows at George, as if, once again, asking for his approval.

"Brilliant," George said, and then they were off.

Some months later, the twins' joke shop was running successfully. It was always packed with curious and excited witches and wizards, and even Molly had admitted that it was a good career for them, despite her doubts and lack of support in the beginning. 

The shop was closed for the day, and the twins were checking the shop's progress.

"Can you believe mum doubted this idea?" George asked. "The money's rolling in!"

"I know," said Fred, gripping on the clipboard in his hands as if it was his dearest treasure. Looking over the numbers, he was amazed - the shop had only been open for a couple of weeks, and they would already consider themselves rich.

"Do you think people can become a proper couple only with the help of a love potion?" Fred looked up and saw his twin brother examining a bottle of love potion closely. He did not have to ask what he was thinking of.

"I don't know," Fred replied, then hesitated. He was not sure if he should bring it up. "But you know... if you're referring to us then-"

"-I didn't say that," George interrupted.

"I bet you thought it." Fred expected some reply, but none came. He was still not sure if he should bring it up. He figured, though, that they would get nowhere pretending everything was fine. "Look, we should talk about it."

"There's nothing to talk about, though."

"Oh? So the fact that we've developed bizarre feelings for each other and almost kissed that one time, that doesn't bother you at all?" The conversation paused for a few seconds.

"It's just... Wrong, you know?"

"I couldn't agree more, brother, but something has to be done." George did not argue. Instead, he put away the love potion and settled back down with his twin. Then they looked at each other.

"Blimely, it's awkward already," George then said, and this made Fred scoff. "So what do we do?"

"I don't know, do you want it to work out, or-"

"-No, I'm not dating my brother, that is not-"

"-I asked what you wanted, not what you thought of the sound of it." George sighed.

"Well, what do  _you_ say, then?"

"I... actually think It would be fun... I mean, we've never been good at following rules anyway." Fred's ears reddened after he said this.

"Oh, bloody hell, Freddie, we're brothers! We're  _twins_! We can't just-"

"-Yeah, okay, we'll do it your way, then; We're nothing but brothers, deal?"

"Yeah, deal." And once again, they looked at each other in silence, and their gazes slid from the other's eyes, to their lips. It was George who spoke first. "You're tempted, are you not?" It was asked so carefully he almost whispered it. 

"Yeah," Fred responded weakly, then got to his feet. "But it's out of the question - we just discussed it." And with those words, Fred left his twin behind and and went to bed in their flat upstairs.

The twins were true to their deal, and they hadn't spoken about it since then. During the battle of Hogwarts, Fred and George stood at the Astronomy Tower, alone at last. They had not been alone since they left their flat. The Death Eaters were coming closer, and they were both aware of how serious the situation was. After all, they were at war.

"You okay, Freddie?" George asked. Fred seemed to hesitate, but then again, he did not want to upset his twin. 

"Yeah," He answered, and they turned to look at each other. A smile found it's way to George's lips.

"Me too." George then elbowed his brother, and he smiled back. It was incredible how even in a moment like this, they would try to cheer each other up and pretend everything was okay. They both knew their words were not true; they could see the fear in each other's eyes, and as they looked back at the incoming battle, their smiles faded. "You know... This could be the end..."

"Don't say that, Georgie..." they looked back at each other once more. "You have to believe.

"I know, but let's face it, we might not even survive this..." Fred sighed.

"Georgie, people will die and many will suffer from their losses... But let's just keep our spirits up and hope for the best."

Thoughts rushed through their heads. They both knew that they were likely to lose friends and family, but they had to stay strong. No matter what would happen in this battle, they would have to fight until the very end. They would have to move on, no matter how difficult it might be. 

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking, Freddie?" Fred looked into his brother's eyes and reached out to grab his hand. This was the first time in a while they had been holding hands. Through the fear and worry, George and Fred's smiles widened, and they ignored the sounds of their surroundings. 

"Yeah, I think I do... It's now or never, right?" This confirmed it.

They closed their eyes, and their smiles faded, as they both realized what was about to happen. They both moved forward while their confidence was still on top. Firstly, their noses touched, then second, they could feel each other's breath. This was when they hesitated - They had never gone this far before. This was really happening, was it not? They were really going to do this. They dared to open their eyes for just a brief moment - just a little peek - and this time, they knew they had to do it. They might never get this chance again, and they dared not to waste it.

The moment their lips brushed against each other, was the moment they truly knew how they felt. There was no time for hesitation, and there was no going back now, because finally, they pressed their lips against each other. They had always expected some feeling of disgust, but they had always been wrong; it was a good feeling.

It was a short, but meaningful kiss; as soon as their lips separated, they leaned their foreheads against each other, their eyes still closed. The butterflies were dancing inside of them, and their hearts were pounding harder than ever. It was odd feeling this happy during times like this, they both thought.

"Are you sure you're okay?" George asked, and not until then did they open their eyes and pull away from each other.

"A bit of nerves, that's all... It's all right, really..." They smiled weakly, then they turned back to see the Death Eaters having broken the protective spell around the castle. Fred sighed. "Let's go," he said, then let go of his brother's hand. They looked at each other once more, as if to say something, but when no words came out, Fred got up and walked back into the castle.

That was the last time George saw his twin brother alive. 


End file.
